


Stored Memories

by rins_rambles



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Gen, allura deserved to know her mother more, angst I guess?, child allura, i really wish we had more time to get to know melenor, or see more of her
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-20
Updated: 2020-06-20
Packaged: 2021-03-04 07:20:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,491
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24819796
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rins_rambles/pseuds/rins_rambles
Summary: Melenor looks across the field of juniberries while holding her child tenderly in her arms. Wondering about the unknown future, and who her child would grow up to become.
Relationships: Allura & Allura's Mother (Voltron), Melenor & Allura (Voltron)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 3





	Stored Memories

As much as she liked social events and meetings, Melenor was absolutely _done_ with arguing with these people that she had been stuck with in the dining hall for over two vargas. Nothing seemed to please them no matter how hard she tried to address each of their concerns. 

Melenor was doing her best to remain as diplomatic and polite as possible, but if she had to answer another question on why Voltron just couldn’t appear at every part of the galaxy to help everyone at the snap of their fingers, she was going to shove the large khrystalia root on her plate down the offenders mouth so they could taste the bitterness she currently felt. 

The only reason she hadn’t gotten close to doing that was thanks to the spork in her hand, which she had been gripping furiously not certain if she was bending it or leaving finger indents in the metal. Thankfully, she still had enough control on her sanity to address these matters as serenely as she could, giving answers that seemed to satisfy the others. So when Coran came over todiscreetly inform her that he would take over while she could go and get some rest, she sighed with some relief. 

“Are you sure?” Melenor desperately wanted to get away from these people, but she didn’t want Coran to take on such a burden. “They might just eat you alive.”

“No worries, I’ve got that part covered. I’ll tell them a few stories about my pop-pop rigging up the castle, and maybe perform some of my famous yalmor calls. Actually, that yalmor thing might not be such a bad idea. Might be a good incentive for a competition,” Coran paused for a moment to twirl his mustache thoughtfully before continuing. “That should buy you a few vargas to prep up for dinner, my queen.”

“Thank you, Coran. You’re the most gorgeous man this universe doesn’t deserve,” Melenor smiled as Coran preened at the compliment and gave her a cheerful wink. Once that seemed to be settled, she returned her attention back to her company. “For now I will adjourn this meeting, as I’m sure all of you have traveled far and are quite weary. Please do enjoy some of the sights and cuisines that Altea has to offer, and I hope to see everyone at dinner tonight.”

As Melenor stood up from her seat at the table, she bowed politely as the other leaders did the same and walked gracefully out the door. Once the doors behind her closed with a hiss, she groaned and rubbed her shoulders that were so tense throughout the meeting it felt like she was back in her classes, learning how to have the perfect poised posture befitting her title and going through different phrases or stories to keep everyone’s attention. She knew the headaches and pains that came with her role as queen, but everyday seemed to be testing her to see how much she could truly handle before she just stretched herself to be eight feet tall and flip the nearest table out of pure frustration. No matter how much Coran offered some of his family’s supposed special Hieronymous tonic, she could only politely refuse and let her mind buzz aimlessly as she walked down the halls.

She made a mental note to definitely get Coran a thank-you gift later for all of the help he was offering to her. 

Now that her day had wound down somewhat allowing her to be alone to her thoughts, she was so exhausted by all of the meetings that she took over in Alfor’s stead. Her head was swimming with so information that it was a wonder how her husband managed to keep everything together when she felt like she was mixing everything up. She didn’t mind the discussions and offers between other planets, but today had been particularly rough, with lots of arguments about space pirates and how the other nobles in the alliance weren’t holding up their end of the deal to provide produce or technology. There’s only so much conflict that she could bear to hear in one meeting, and she was glad that she wouldn’t have to listen to them again until dinner. 

As Melenor passed the windows of the castle, she gazed outside to see the field of juneberries blooming under the afternoon sky that warmed her heart. She always loved those flowers. She remembers lounging in the field admiring them for hours when she was younger. She hadn’t been able to get time to herself and enjoy the scent of the flowers like she used to, and she felt that she sorely needed it. However, she wondered if it would be better if she had someone to share this moment with. 

She continued down the hall, walking towards her chambers and the doors slid open to reveal a large dimly lit room. Here, she felt she could really relax, that having to present herself as the queen wasn’t going to be a mask she had to keep wearing for now. 

Melenor’s gaze shifted over to the large bed she and Alfor shared and was tempted to flop down onto it, to curl up with the promising soft and plush cushions with an equally soft blanket. To close her eyes for just a few dobashes and allow her mind to drift off into pleasant dreams, or at least a hum of silence. It wouldn’t be the worst way to spend her free afternoon. But as tempting as that idea was, she had more interesting plans in store as she walked towards the small round crib that stood a few feet away from the large luxurious looking bed. 

Melenor quietly snuck over to daughter’s crib, doing her best to keep her stride as quiet as possible and looked at the small projection of constellations and stars dancing over her daughter’s tiny head. Coran had insistently installed it earlier and it first played Yalmor calls which he assured Melenor would be good for the princess to learn, but Trygel helped fix it later once he was out of the room to play soft lullabies instead. Allura was sleeping soundly, and Melenor allowed her daughter to rest for a while longer until her eyes started to flutter open. Allura began to giggle enthusiastically and reach up to her mother, begging to be held. 

Melenor smiled as she gently lifted her daughter out of bed, turning off the projector, wrapping her up in a thin layer of blankets and watching as she blinked the sleep away. Once that was done, Allura began to make an attempt to grab at her face, but Melenor intercepted the move and instead placed a finger near Allura’s hand that she gleefully took. She was also grateful she didn’t try to go for her hair, remembering when she had Honerva to hold her daughter once and how Allura nearly tore out her friends hair-locks. She would never admit aloud how amusing it was to see her normally put-together friend struggle to understand what a baby was. 

“You have a powerful grip. You’ll be a fine warrior some day, Allura,” Melenor cooed as Allura began to gnaw at her fingertip. “Perhaps even be better than your father.”

Allura removed her mouth and smiled as if agreeing with that statement. Melenor leaned down to gently place multiple kisses over her daughter’s forehead and moved some of her bedhead out of the way. Allura tried to slap her hand away, but Melenor persisted. Once their small wrestling match was over, Melenor nuzzled Allura’s nose with her own, bouncing her child up in her arms. Allura cooed at the motion and waved her hands for more when Melenor stopped moving. 

“Do you want to go my special place? Do you want to go and view some flowers with me, my darling?” Melenor asked as she walked out of the room and her legs instinctually knew where to go without having to look up. “It will be our little secret from your father. Something just for us. So you must promise not to tell him, alright?”

Although she couldn’t articulate words yet, Allura replied with enthusiastic babbling. 

It had been a bit lonely with Alfor going off on all of his expeditions with the paladins of Voltron, so she and Coran spent a lot of their time making sure everything was well with the planet, the alliance, and with Allura. Melenor didn’t mind, that only meant she could have her secret moments with her daughter, sharing something only for their eyes. 

It took them some time getting through the elevators and going down the stairs, with Allura attempting to wiggle out of her mother’s arms and grab at whatever was nearby, but when they made it to the fields, Melenor felt comforted by the scent of the juniberries. She remembered joking to Alfor when they were still courting each other that she might have named their daughter juniberry because she loved the flower so much, and he thankfully took the joke in good humor. 

However, she did seriously consider it at some point during her pregnancy. 

Melenor looked for a good spot to sit down and once she found it, she tucked her legs in and set Allura down, unravelling a bit of the blanket so she could crawl freely. Allura looked around in surprise before slowly beginning to explore. She curiously grabbed at the flowers in order to examine them closely. 

Melenor watched her child intensively stare at the plant with a look she had seen many times, but was too enticed to see what would play out to attempt to intervene and stop the inevitable. Once a flower was in her grasp Allura twirled the plant in her hand, and then experimentally gnawed on the petals before spitting it out with a disgusted whine. She turned to Melenor, a frown on her face and as she crawled towards her mother she beat her tiny fists on her knees. 

Melenor recalled from her youth when she and her friends would play games of dare, and she had chosen to eat a petal of a juniberry. Needless to say, Melenor had a similar reaction to what her daughter was currently experiencing. The queen could no longer contain herself and bursted into fits of laughter as she put her hand around Allura and lifted up her child who looked on the verge of actually crying. 

“I’m sorry darling, I’m sorry! I wanted to see how you’d react, I couldn’t resist!” 

Allura only continued to whine as her response. 

She held Allura close and began to rock back and forth, humming an old Altean lullaby that she used sing to her when she was in her womb, and Allura calmed down at the song. Melenor looked up to watch the sun set and admired how some of the petals danced through the air at a small gust of wind. It was nice having this moment of peace, to know that this was a place her child could be safe. Allura’s attention then lifted away from her shoulder, a thin line of drool connecting the corner of her mouth to Melenor’s dress. She smiled as she simply wiped it away and watched her daughters eyes stare out at the horizon. 

“Look at all these beautiful flowers, Allura,” Melenor said, gazing at the field of juneberries under the crimson sky. “Your father had these planted for me when we were to be wed, and they bloomed so beautifully the day you were born.”

She nuzzled her daughters face against her cheek, getting some giggles from her. Melenor wanted nothing more than to have this moment frozen in time forever, to hold her baby daughter in a place she loved, knowing that days like these wouldn’t be able to last. 

“One day, I can’t wait to be able to share all of this with you when we’ll be able to talk to each other. There are so many things I want to talk to you about and teach you.About the things that I learned while in the court, and of course, how to best beat your father one on one if you ever get the chance.”

Melenor plucked a flower from the grass and gently blew on it, causing the petals to fly off and spin around Allura’s head. She watched as her daughter tried to catch whatever petals came nearby with her little hands. 

There were old children stories that blowing the petals of a juinberry could grant wishes, and while Melenor knew that it was not true, she couldn’t help but want to wish for her daughter. 

To wish for her to grow up strong and happy. To wish for her to be kind in the face of adversary, and to hope that she would grow into a strong woman who would be able to help the universe in her own way. 

“I love you Allura, my little star. I hope you never forget that,” Melenor said as she fondly rubbed her cheeks against Allura’s. “You will become someone the universe shall remember always.”

* * *

A slim hand reached out to try and touch Melenor’s face, but it fazed through the queen’s skin the moment it made contact. 

Then the owner of that hand pulled back, returning their hand neatly into their lap. It wasn’t really her mother, it was all just a projection of her past memories after all. But she had spent so much time gazing at this image, committing her voice and face to memory, she yearned for nothing more than for the hologram to become a reality. 

Allura, now in her early youth stared up at the projection of her mother who she had never known beyond photos and projections. The mother who she would be told she had a striking resemblance to whenever she probed others with questions about what kind of person she was. Her memories unfortunately were not fully saved before her passing, so only moments of her past were properly processed. It wasn’t much, but she would take whatever she could get. 

The princess had seen this projection play out many times over her life. When she first came into this room when she was at least a preteen, from all of the other memories she sifted through, she found this one in particular that she couldn’t tear her eyes away from. When she curiously pressed the projector button to play, she watched the whole afternoon of her mother play out in front of her, where she spent it doting on her daughter and blowing the petals off the juniberry flowers to make them dance through the air. Allura started to wonder if her father ever came to this room often, to see the moments of his wife and daughter when they were happy together and relishing each others company whilst he was away. To ruminated over wether or not he should have stayed on Altea more to be there with his family. It made her a bit annoyed and saddened to think that he was keeping this away from her, leading into a small fight that had Allura refusing to address her father for at least a week, pouting all the way through. 

Eventually, her father did tell her more about her mother, although some bits came out a little reluctantly. After that, she was allowed to see whatever memories of her mother that was saved, but this one in particular was the one she was always drawn to. 

Allura looked at the woman who fondly gazed at her baby daughter, tickling the little feet that was poking out of the blankets as if she were the loveliest being in the entire galaxy. The projections of the blooming juniberry field always had set her at ease whenever something bothered her. Now that she knew it was also someplace her mother frequented and loved gave her a connection she never thought she’d possibly have. This was something they both shared, an odd secret that would be held between only them. 

Allura continued to watch as her mother allowed a baby Allura to tug at the hem of her dress and try to gnaw on it. The queen then plucked more juniberries and wove them into a crown, something Allura had learned how to do after watching the memory so many times. She absently moved her hands to mimic her mother’s movements, and could predict and repeat the words her mother would say.

“A crown for my princess,” the two women said in unison, their voices harmonizing together. 

Allura watched as her mother placed the makeshift flower crown upon her child’s head and observed her daughter’s bemused reaction to the new accessory. Allura pulled her knees up to her chest, resting her chin against her crossed arms and wondering what her mother would have been like had she not passed away those many years ago. What memories they would have shared together.

_She looks so happy_ , Allura thought as the happy mother and child played with the juniberry petals by throwing them into the air like confetti. _How could someone like this have passed away?_

Allura loved her father and Coran, who she considered her second father, but there were days where she wondered what kind of person her mother was outside of the few memories she had in her possesion. There was only so much she could glean off of those, and even less when she asked her father or Coran directly. All Coran would answer was that Melenor was a gentle and kind queen, and her passing was one that the kingdom deeply mourned. Still, it wasn’t enough, it never seemed to be enough for her. 

“There’s so much of you that I know, but so much more that I don’t.” 

Allura knew the projection did not have the ability to respond to her words, but she wanted to hear herself put her feelings into words and try to find some peace from them. 

“What would you think of me now, mother? What would you say to comfort me? What if I’m not good enough?”

“Princess! Are you in here?”

Allura turned to see Coran standing at the doorways that opened with a hiss, a holo-screen floating in his hand. He looked up from it to see the projection of the late queen laying in the field next to her baby daughter, letting her child play with her tiara and laughing when she began to gnaw on it with vigor. He smiled gently at Allura, putting the screen away and placing his hands behind his back. 

“It’s time for your lessons.”

“I’ll be right there, Coran, just a few more dobashes?” Allura asked, putting on her best pleading face that usually seemed to work with Coran. 

He sighed as he caved in. 

“Of course, but only a few dobashes, and then you should get ready to go train with the gladiator.”

“I will.”

As she drew her attention back to the projection, she heard Coran’s voice project to her. 

“I don’t mean to speak out of turn, princess, but your mother would be proud to see where you’re at now,” he gazed fondly at the queen now pretending to play hide-and-seek, pulling Allura’s blanket in front of her face and dropping it with a loud “peek-a-boo” to her daughter’s delight. “She was an incredible woman that I had the greatest honor of ever meeting.”

“Thank you Coran, your words mean a lot to me,” Allura replied, giving Coran the warmest smile she could muster. “I wouldn’t know where I’d be without you.”

He bowed once more before putting on a stern voice, “Remember princess, only-”

“A few more dobashes, I wont forget.”

Coran nodded and quietly left the room, with Allura now watching her mother attempt to weave flowers in her hair. Allura wanted to treasure as much of this as possible, afraid she would forget what her mother’s voice sounded like, or the kindness she showered her in when she was just a babe. No matter what, she would try and live by the kindness her mother exuded, if there was a way to keep a part of her alive somehow.

Feeling her back getting sore, Allura stood up and stretched her legs, looking at the projection of her mother one last time before leaving. Saying the words she could now articulate clearly that her mother would say so many times.

“I love you, mother.”

Somehow, Melenor’s image turned to Allura as if she heard her, a warm smile on her lips as the she moved towards the door. As the princess stepped away from the juneberry field, Melenor’s image looked onward, watching her daughter and knowing that one day, she’d be someone the universe would never forget as she vanished back into nothing more than a memory. 

“Be brave, my little star.”

**Author's Note:**

> This was for the Voltron zine "Moms' Eyes Only", and I had a lot of fun writing for these two.


End file.
